Apparatus for the continuous treatment of liquiform comestibles



W. APPARATUS FOR THE CONTINUOUS TREATMENT 0F LIQUIFORM COMESTIBLES 5Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June;` 12, 1947 l ATTORNEY April 17, 1951 w. E.coNLEY, .1R 2,549,575

APPARATUS FOR THE CONTINUOUS TREATMENT 0F LIQUIFORM COMESTIBLES WELD E.CONLEY JR. INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY April 17, 1951 w. E. coNLEY. JR 2,549,575

' APPARATUS FOR THE CONTINUUS TREATMENT 0F LIQUIFORM COMESTIBLES FiledJune l2, 1947 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY WELD E. GONLEY JR.

April 17, 1951 w. E. coNLEY JR 2,549,575

APPARATUS FOR THE CONTINUOJS TREATMENT OF LIQUIFORM COMESTIBLES FiledJune l2, 1947 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 .'l- --4- Wleyelfgc/RELAY COIL m RELAYCONTACTS CLOSED l RELAY CONTACTS OPEN K0- SWITCH OPEN RELAY COL THREEA/AUTOMATIC INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY WELD E. CONLEY JR.

April 17, 1951 w. E. coNLEY, JR 2,549,575

APPARATUS FOR THE CONTINUOUS TREATMENT OF LIQUIFORM cOMEsTIBLEs FiledJune 12. 1947 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Fi gil I iii l s w TcHEs 958:94 4/ cLoseoSVII CHES 95894 *L* OPEN 56 Patented Apr. 17, 1951 APPARATUS FOR THE`CONTINUOUS TREAT= MENT F LIQUIFORM COMESTIBLES Weld E. Conley, Jr.,Wauwatosa, Wis., assignor to Chain Belt Company, Milwaukee, Wis., acorporation of Wisconsin Application June 12, 1947, Serial No. 754,096

2 Claims. l

This invention relates to the treatment of f'lowable comestibles and inparticular to the continuous sterilization and deaeration of suchcomestibles as tomato, fruit, citrus, and similar juices. The teachingsof this invention can also be successfully applied to the treatment ofdairy products and the like.

Various processes for the continuous heat treatment of owablecomestibles have been used in the past without too much success. As aresult, today most of the food processing industries use batchprocesses, and the comestible receives its final treatment after it hasbeen sealed in cans. This mode of treatment necessarily involvesconsiderable mechanical equipment to handle the cans while they arebeingsterilized and cooled. Further, the sterilization of the comestiblein the can requires a considerable amount of time, and, since the iinalflavors and vitamin value of the comestibles are controlled, by andlarge, by the time and temperature used during processing, thepresent-day canned comestibles are not without defects in flavor andVitamin'value. The treatment aforesaid also has defects in the retardedinactivation of organic catalysts such as enzymes which act upon thecomestible, destroying its natural quality of flavor, body, and vitamincontent.v These are some of the reasons that canned foods are not inanywise comparable to the natural products themselves.

The use of the instant invention reduces the amount of time needed toheat treat the comestibles; also it combines the steps of heat treatmentand deaeration in a continuous process. The use of divers complexmechanical applications usually necessaryis entirely eliminated. In thismanner the invention provides a more naturalcanned food product whilereducing the amount of handling usually necessary, with consequenteconomies.

It is the object of this invention to provide a process for Ythecontinuous, rapid treatment of apparatus for the carrying out of theabove meni tioned process.

Another object of the invention is to provide apparatus for said processwhich is capable of being easily cleaned.

Still another object of the invention is to provide apparatus for thecarrying out of the process aforesaid which is adapted to simpleoperation.

A further object of this invention is to provide apparatus for carryingout the process aforesaid which is capable of economical operation.

These and other objects will appear in the examination of the followingdrawings and in the reading of the following description and claims.

In the figures:

Fig. 1 is a general view of the entire apparatus suitable for practicingthe invention.

Fig. 2 is a view of part of the apparatus used in the invention showinga modication wherein a steam jet pump is embodied.

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic drawing of the various air controls shown inFig. l.

Fig. 4 is another diagrammatic drawing of the air controls shown in Fig.'1.

Fig. 5 is a schematic drawing of the electrical controls used with theapparatus.

Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic drawing of thecon-r trols for the directcontact heat exchanger shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 7 is a diagrammatic drawing for the controls of the indirectcontact heat exchanger shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 8 is a diagrammatic drawing of the controls for the evaporativecooler shown in Fig. l. Fig. 9 is a broken away view of the holdingIproduct pump 24.

Referringto Fig. l, the comestible is shown as entering the apparatusthrough the inlet pipe ii). The temperature of the incoming comestiblewill vary depending on the type of comestible being treated and alsowhether or not it may have been heated or otherwise treated in priorsteps. In the case of citrus juice, the extracted juice is usuallystrained and may then be. pumped and piped into the inlet lil. With manyjuices, the comestible entering at lil may very well carry a portion ofdivided solids; so long as it is owable and the solids are not toolarge, the juice vessel i? showing the location of the floats theren isadapted to processing by this invention. The valve il controls the nowof the comestible into the direct contact heat exchanger l2 where itpasses through a nozzle i3 surrounded by a downwardly divergingcone-shaped baffle i4 arranged to effect a downward spray of thecomestible as shown in Fig. l. Hot vapors evolved during the subsequentevaporative cooling of said comestible are introduced into the chamberi2 by means of a duct l5 shown as entering the chamber i2 near the lowerend thereof.- The incoming comestible directly contacts these vapors,oondensing them and thereby raising the temperature of the comestible.In this manner volatile constituents rich in flavor and aroma areretained. The noncondensable vapors, such as air, pass the baille meanslli and are vented to the atmosphere through the duct i6.

rlhe preheated comestible leaving the tank l2 flows into a holding tankor vessel Il through the duct means i2. There are three float controlmeans in the tank il which are designated it, 2d, and 2l. These will bevmore clearly described in subsequent referencesy to the controls. Athermometer 22 is positioned in the tank to enable ready reading of thetemperature or the comestible in said tank. The outlet of said tank 23is positioned at the bottom thereof and is shown communicating wit-h apositive displacement pump 2li which is arranged to withdraw thecomestible at arate substantially commensurate with its average low intothe chamber l2. Also, the pump appreciably increases the pressure of thecomestible, in some cases up to a pressure as high as '75 p. s. i., sothat it can be moved at a high velocity through the following hightemperature heat exchanger. A drain 25 for the outlet oi said tank isprovided in the line 23 as shown in Fig. l. The pump 2f-fi is connectedby means of piping 26 to the indirect heat exchanger 2l. `'This heatexchanger as shown in Fig. l is a shell and tube type heat exchanger,although other equivalent means may be provided. The heat exchanger 2lin the instant embodiment is employed to pass the preheated comestibletherethrough at a high velocity which is attainedby reducing the crosssection ol? the tubes through which the juice passes, this cross-sectional reduction may be increased as the juice progresses. Theheated medium for said exc-hanger is super-atmospheric steam w ichenters at 2S, passes; through a strainer 29, valve 3&3, a pressurereducer 3 i, and a valve 39. Modulating valve 32 is controlled by presetautomatic controls responsive to variations in temperature of theoutgoing comestible,the detailed arrangement of which will besubsequently described. The condensate from said indirect Contact heatexchanger leaves through the outlet $53. A thermometer Si?, is providedat the comestible outlet for visually determining the outlet temperatureor" the heated comestible. Also, a temperature bulb E5 is inserted atthis point, being further connected to automatic controls to regulatethe temperature of the outgoing comestible.

The comestible leaving the heat exchanger is directed to the evaporativecooler 35 by means of piping 3l. The ilow of the heated, high pressurecomestible to the evaporative cooler is controlled by a three-way valve38. This Valve is controlled by an automatic temperature control ESresponsive to the temperature bulb li@ and the float switch 4i, so thatthe comestible, when insufficiently heated, is by-passed to the holdingtank l'i by means of the piping i2. Also,

the hot vapors evolved during the evaporative cooling are permitted toi'low trom the evaporative cooling vessel through the piping i5 asaforesaid. The comestible cooled by the flashing oi of vapors is drawnoi from the bottom of the tank by means of pipingil. It may be herenoted that the comestible leaving the chamber 3G is also substantiallydeaerated, as the release of pressure in said chamber coupled with therapid evolution of volatiles releases most of the entrained anddissolved air from the comestible. Further, the concentration of thecondensable volatiles in the cooled comestible is substantially equal tothat of the untreated juice, for the condensable volatiles dashing on insaid cooler are returned to the flow of the incoming comestible therebyincreasing or fortifying the concentration of said volatiles in thocomestible held in the tank Il. Hence, after the evaporative coolingstep, it follows that a natural amount of condensable volatiles remainsin the iinal product.

As a yfinal step, the treated comestible is withdrawn from the chamber36 and transferred through the pipe 43 to filling machines (not shown)whence it is filled and sealed into cans. The nal product temperature isslightly below the boiling point of the comestible in the evaporativecooler 36 due to heat losses in the pipe 43 and in the lller. Ii thepressure in the chamber 36 is maintained at or below atmosphericpressure, it follows that filling of the comestible into containers isnot a great problem because of boiling or foaming. The pressure in thechamber 36 may be maintained suiciently high, however, so that the nnalproduct after lling and sealing is at a temperature to inactivate anybacteria which may have entered the can during the filling operation,if'aseptic lling means were not used. This is simply done by invertingthe can so that the still hot comestible contacts the cover of the can.The cans next require the only further treatment of cooling prior tolabeling, packaging, and storing.

Variations oi the apparatus are possible, such as combining both vesselsi2 and l1 into one chamber. The holding tank l1 and the other portionsof the apparatus are constructed so as to be easily cleaned when theline is not in operation, as this is a desired sanitary requisite forall food processing equipment.

The apparatus illustrated herein will process a comestible having atemperature at the inlet lll` of F;, so that its temperature afterdirect contact with the hot vapors in the chamber l2 may rise to as muchas 205 F. Further, the temperature of the comestible shown leaving theindirect contact heat exchanger 27 may be raised to about 260 F. whichis ordinarily suicient to inactivate any bacteria present in the juice.After evaporative cooling the nal product temperature may be aboutZIO-212 F. The conditions aforesaid will prevail when the vent IS isopened to and communicating with the atmosphere.

In thev modication shown in Fig. 2 the vent i6 is in communication witha steam jet pump 45" which will reduce the pressure in the system.Attached to said jet pump are the steam lines 46 and 41'. The amount ofpressure in the system is controlled by a spring loaded valve 48 whichpermits atmospheric air to enter the jacket of the pump 45 when thepressure therein falls below a predetermined Value. A vacuum gauge 45 isshown connected to the duct I5 to ascertain the pressure existing in thesystem.

The use of the steam jet 45 permits the comestible to be cooled inchamber 36 to a lower temperature, which is desirable in processingcertain citrus juices such as orange juice Where a pressure of 19 inchesHg. absolute will produce a temperature in the holding tank I1 ofapproximately 190 F. For processing orange juice the indirect heatexchanger 21 may be adjusted so that the outlet temperature thereof willbe approximately 220 F. Higher temperatures are generally detrimental tothe avor of citrus juices. The comestible will evaporatively cool in thevessel 36 to approximately 190 F. before it is withdrawn, and the juiceentering the heat exchanger 21 will be preheated from approximately 130F. to 160 F. by contact with the vapors from the cooler.

The functions and operation of the air operatedl controls are shown inFigs. 3, 4, 6, '1, and 8. In Fig. 4 the product is shown as flowingthrough the valve II by means of thepiping I 0. The valve II is thereshown in the closed position; this is by reason of the fact thatsolenoid 5I is de-energized, permitting airV to flow through l Thecomestible flows into the chamber I2 when A the solenoid 5I is energizedwhich action permits air to pass through the valve port 51 and ventthrough the opening 58 of pilot valve I9. The pilot valve I9 is alsoconnected to the source of air supply through the line 54', and when thefloat I9 is in a low position 59, the vent 58 is open as aforesaid.When, however, the float i9' is in the high position 60, air passes fromthe line 54 through the valve I9, thence through port 51 and acts uponthe diaphragm of the valve I I to close it, shutting off the flow ofcomestible into the chamber I2. Thus a predetermined maximum level `ofcomestible is maintained in the tank- I1.

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic drawing showing the operation of the controlsfor the evaporative cooler 36, the by-pass 42 therefor, and the indirectheat exchanger 21. The steam valve 32 is of a type which is held closedby means of springs and is opened by the influence of air pressure on adiaphragm-as shown in Fig. '7. Therefore, when the air supply is cutoff, the valve closes. The air supply from any suitable source is shownat 6I passing through a lter 62 and a reducing valve 63; it is furthershown as being connected to an indicating pressure controller 64 and atemperature controller 65. These two units, which are conventional andneed not be described in detail, are arranged to operate in series ashereinafter described so that while a constant temperature of thecomestible leaving the indirect heat exchanger 21 is maintained,

the pressure in said exchanger will never become.

excessive.

The instrument bulb is inserted in the outlet of the indirect heatexchanger 21 and leads to the temperature controller 65 which throttlesthe flow of air when the temperature at the cut-v exchanger 21 is notexcessive.

mits the air to flow to the valve 65 if the pres-a sure of the steam inthe shell of the indirect heat Pressure in the heat exchanger istransmitted to the pressure regulator 64 by the pressure line 66 forthis purpose. In Fig. 3 the solenoid 61 is shown as being de-energized;as can be appreciated from the foregoing the air influencing themovement of the diaphragm of the valve 32 flows out through valve 65 andport 61', whereupon the Valve 32 is closed by its springs. Air comingfrom the indicating pressure controller 64 is permitted to ow throughport 68 of valve 65 to the diaphragm of valve 32 when the solenoid 61 isenergized, the control of which will be subsequently described. rIhisaction opens the valve, and as the amount of air is modulated by thecontrols, responsive to the outlet temperature of the comestible and thepressure within the heat exchanger, it will be thusly appreciated how aconstant predetermined outlet temperatureV of the comestible isobtained.

The three-way valve 38 shown in Figs. 3 and 8 is a type which normallyprovides a passage for thepartially heated comestible flowing throughpiping 31 from the indirect heat exchanger 21 to the holding tank I1 bymeans of piping 42. This is by reason of the structure of the valvewhich is urged in this position by means of springs. A diaphragm memberresponsive to air pressure urges the valve into a position permittingthe ow of the comestible into the evaporative cooler- 36. The air forthis purpose is obtained from any suitable source as at 6I and isdirected to the valve 1D through port 1I. As shown in Figs. 3 and 8, thesolenoid 12 is in a defenergized position which position permits the airacting upon the diaphragm of the valve 38 to pass through valve 10 bymeans of piping 13 and vent through port 1I. The safety thermal limitrecorder 39 is responsive to a temperature bulb 46 placed in the productline 31 which leads from the indirect heat exchanger. If the temperatureof the comestible has not attained a predetermined value, the thermalsafety limit recorder 35 does not function to energize the solenoid 12,vwhereupon the comestible is bypassed through piping 32 to holding tank I1 and continues through the pump 2li and heat exchanger 21 until thepredetermined value of temperature is reached. At this point theinstrument 39 is responsive to the bulb 40; the solenoid 12 isenergized, air operates the valve 38 to cause the comestible to flowinto the evaporative cooler 36.

A schematic wiring diagram of the electrical control circuit is shown inFig. 5. The current supply for the control circuit is volts, 60 cyclecurrent from any suitable source shown at 13 and 13. There are switches14 and 16' and fuses 15 and 15 serving as the conventional ccntrols andsafeguards. Y Y

Assuming that the comestible is under pressure in the piping I6 but isblocked by the closed valve I I, the control system functionsaccordingly: the switches 14 and 14 are thrown whereupon the push buttonswitch 16 is caused to make contact thus energizing the relay coil 11which closes the relay contact-11 thus energizing the left side of thecontrol line 18. The manually operated three-way push button switch 19causes the solenoid 5I to be energized when it is closed whereupon thefloat control valve I9 controls the ow of the comestibleA into thechamber I2- as has been described.

The lower oat '2l in the holding or surge tank l1 has two switches; 19arranged to close on the near high level of comestible in the tank, and8D arranged to open on the near lowlevel of the comestible in the tank.The switch 'i9' will also open on the low level in the tank; likewisethe switch 8,9 will close on the high level in the holding tank Il,Hence, when the high level of comestible in holding tank I1 is reached,both switches 19 and 80 are closed. This energizes the relay coil 8| inthe electrical starter 85 of the product pump 24, closing the relaycontact 82 and also the line contacts 33, thus starting the product pump24 in operation as shown in Figs. and 11. The arrangement of theswitches controlled by float 2|, provides a range near the maximum andminimum limits of the float in which both switches are either closed oropen as the case may be. The push button switch 84 is normally closed;however, it is arranged `so that the product pump control can beoperated manually should such operation be desired.

In Fig. l1 the product pump nis shown connected to a source of 220volts, 3 phase, 60 cycle current. A conventional hand operated switch 84is provided ahead of the electrical starter 85.

Referring again to Fig. 5 it will be noted that the middle -iioa-t inthe holding or surge tank I1 is arranged to operate two switches; 86which closes on the near high level of comestible in said tank and 8lwhich opens on the near low level of comestible in holding or surge tankil. The switch 85 is also arranged to open on the low level in saidtank, and the switch S is also 4arranged to close on the high level ofcomestible in said tank. Thus when an operative level of comestible isin tank Il, both switches are closed, and the relay coil 88 isenergized, closing the relay .contacts 89, 9i), and 92; whereuponsolenoid 6l' is energized, permitting the steam valve 3,2 to open. Thearrangement of the switches controlled by oat 20 also provides a rangenear the maximum and minimum limits of the float in which both switchesare either closed or open.

It can now be appreciated that the indirect heat f exchanger will not beheated until there is suiiicient product to pass therethrough withoutscorching; this -is true in the initial operation of the system or inthe event of a breakdown during continuous operation. The push buttonswitch 9! is provided so that manual control of the steam valve 32 maybe had if desired.

The float control 4I in the evaporative cooler 36 has two switches 93and 9e incorporated therein. The switch 93 is arranged to close on thenear high level of comestible in said vessel, and the switch 94 isarranged to open on the Ynear low level. Conversely, the switch 93 openson the low level, and the switch 94 closes on the high level. Therefore,assuming that the high 'level of comestible in the evaporative cooler''is reached, in the instance where the subsequent iilling operation 'hasceased, the level .of the comestible will rise and both switches will beclosed. Thereupon the relay .coil E35 is energized which closes therelay contacts 95; this action further opens the relay contacts .91 andfwhereupon the solenoid v9:1 is de-energized, and the steam totheindirect .heatexchanger is 'shut o. Also, the comestible is by-pass'edthrough the valve :32 `to the holding or surge vessel il. VThe aboveaction continues until the level of comestible in the evaporative cooler36 falls, when .it

' reaches ,a predetermined Alow level, lthe switches 93 and 94 areopened; whereupon theswitch-Qll causes the relay coil to bede-energized. This action permits the relay contacts 91 and 98'to closeand the contact 96 to open. The comestible is then heated but continuesto b e by-passed until it has reached a predetermined temperature value.Thereupon the saiety thermal limit recorder 39 which is responsive totemperature bulb 48 closes the switch 99, and the solenoid l2 isenergized; whereupon the comestible is sprayed into the evaporativecooler as aforesaid. The arrangement of the switches controlled by float4I' further provides a range near the maximum and minimum limits of thefloat in which both switches are either closed or open as the case maybe. A three-way push button switch |00 is provided to operate thesolenoid manually, automaticaly as stated, or to shut it oil. The entireautomatic control circuit is shut off by means of push button switch mi.

One of the present practices in the treatment of such juices as thosederived from citrus fruits is to deaerate the unsterilized juice priorto filling. This procedure is carried out by conventional deaeratingequipment. It has been found that after deaeration, a material amount ofvolatile constituents of the juice, such as peel oil which makes forincreased flavor of the juice, has been lost due to the volatilizationduring the deaeration step. In order to bring the juice up to avorstandards, the constituents must be again introduced into the juice bysome other means. This procedure is not satisfactory in that itincreases the processing steps, and it is diiiicult to inject thecorrect amount of peel oil to bring the processed juice up to naturalvalues. A study of the instant invention readily leads one to understandthat the loss of flavorsome constituents is entirely avoided. For thevolatiles are condensed by the incoming comestible in the direct contactheat exchanger l2. Further, the amount of peel oil in the finalsterilized and deaerated product is the correct natural amountcorresponding with that in the freshly extracted juice. The foregoingholds as well for .the processing .of other liquiform comestibles;.there is no boiling Yaway of flavor possible during .the processing .ofcomestibles. Further, since some vitamins such as vitamin A are oilyliquids, it is Apossible .to lose portions of `the .vitamin content ofcomestibles through .steam distillation when batch processes vare used;portions of .the vitamin A vwill simply boil oi. However, in thepractice of this invention it is apparent that such a' loss is ,notpossible.

lThe operation of .the apparatus shown is very economical and eicient.For by utilizing .the latent heat of vaporization .given up Vduring vtheevaporative cooling step lto heat .the incoming comestible, economies insteam and equipment are effected. rIhese economies are not present inmethods used today, for the such continuous heat treatment and.deaeration .of comestibles is not possible with other types of treatingequipment. The advantages over .batch methods are also obvious. Further,the .apparatus shown is capable of vbeing .readily cleaned after thesystem has .been-.in operation. All that is necessary -is to introducewater or a detergent solution -into the system and circulate it as thecomestible is circulated during treatment. 'This action flushes out anyremaining comestible and Ileaves' the system entirely clean when thesolution is withdrawn.

The invention can Vbe practiced with divers comestibles, and 4theapparatus shown and de-` scribed is capable of Various modications inform, also in values of heat, pressures and velocities used; hence, itis to be limited only by the clear import of the following claims:

1. Apparatus for the continuous sterilization of owable comestiblescontaining a Vaporizable constituent which comprises a tall Verticalreceiving and vapor-liquid exchange column, liquid-spray distributingmeans in the upper portion of said column for spraying the comesl0 tiblethereintc, a liquid-holding vessel connected with the lower end of saidcolumn and into which Y 10 2. The apparatus as dened in claim 1, inwhich a by-pass is arranged for conducting the heated comestible fromthe heat-exchanger back into the holding Vessel.

WELD E. CONLEY, JR.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 960,417 Schwanhausser June 7,1916 1,484,296 Butaud Feb. 19, 1924 1,541,994 Nielsen June 16, 19252,064,808 Beran Dec. 22, 1936 2,122,954 Rogers July 5, 1938 2,392,197Smith et al. Jan. 1, 1946 2,401,077 Johnson` May 28, 1946 2,498,836Crossy Feb. 28, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 587,459 FranceOct. 16, 1924

